Brickbats & Bouquets: Happy 25th to Mary Yoder's Restaurant

BOUQUETS: To Mary Yoder's Restaurant of Middlefield Village, on marking its 25th year in business.

Owners Larry and Donna Kannal, inspired by a friend affiliated with Der Dutchman Restaurant in Holmes County and noticing that few Amish eateries existed in the area, first opened the doors of Mary Yoder's in downtown Middlefield Village.

After three years the burgeoning business was busting at the seams.

"We had way outgrown it," Donna said. "People came from all the suburbs of Cleveland as soon as the word got out. Our plate was our advertisement."

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She added that after a decision to pull up stakes and move to more spacious quarters, they built the current location on Route 608.

Here's hoping that the restaurant's next 25 years are just as delicious.

BRICKBATS: To Ward F. Stone of Chardon, who was sentenced Thursday to 17 years in prison for attempted rape and gross sexual imposition against a victim who, at the time the offenses started, was under 10 years of age.

Stone, 48, pleaded guilty in May to two counts -- the lesser included charge of attempted rape and one count of gross sexual imposition. Given the age of the victim, the charges remained first-degree and third-degree felonies, respectively.

The crimes occurred between November 2008 and November 2012.

Geauga County Common Pleas Court Judge David L. Fuhry sentenced Stone to seven years in prison for each attempted rape charge and 36 months in prison for the gross sexual imposition charge. The judge ordered the incarceration sentences be served consecutively.